Munsters: A Walk on the Mild Side
"A Walk on the Mild Side" is the third episode of season one of the 1964-1966 television series The Munsters. The episode was directed by Norman Abbott and written by Norm Liebmann, Ed Haas and Allan Burns. It first aired on CBS on Thursday, October 8th, 1964. In this episode, Herman Munster cannot find a cure for his insomnia, so he begins taking long walks in the park in the middle of the night. He is witnessed by several people and before long, stories of a giant, hideous monster lurking in the park begins to circulate. Herman becomes concerned and wants to find out who this mysterious "monster" could possibly be. Synopsis Act One Lily comes downstairs to find Herman sitting on the couch going through a stack of bills. He complains about how much everything costs, including expenses like braces for Eddie's fangs and the ever-rising electricity costs used to power Grandpa's experiments. Lily tries to console him and suggests that he should take a walk in the night air. Down at the police station, a police officer tells Chief Harris about some mysterious goings-on taking place down at Midcity Park. The chief promises to look into it right away. Act Two Herman does as Lily suggested and goes for a walk in Midcity Park. He passes by a drunken reveler and scares him so badly that he climbs up a lamp post to get away from him. Herman then passes a woman walking her dog. After he is gone, a masked robber comes out of the bushes and accosts the woman. After he takes off, both the woman and her dog faint and fall to the ground. Oblivious to anything going on, Herman continues walking. An elderly woman peers out her window and sees him lumbering down the street. She telephones the police and reports seeing a monster. The following morning, all of the Munsters go into the kitchen for breakfast. Grandpa reads the newspaper which reports on the strange "creature" seen stalking through Midcity Park the previous evening. Herman doesn't put any stock into the report, saying that he never saw any fiends or monsters when he was taking his walk. At the police station, a throng of people have gathered, including those who witnessed Herman's stroll through the park. While giving descriptions of the monster, the woman with the dog incorrectly describes the man who tried to mug her as Herman. Chief Harris goes into his office and puts out an alert for a nine-foot man with green skin, red eyes and cold hands. Back at the Munster residence, Grandpa brags to Marilyn and Eddie about his latest invention -- an enlarging machine. He activates the device, but it explodes covering Marilyn and Grandpa in soot. The blast elevates Eddie onto the chandelier. Upstairs, the noise from Grandpa's lab is driving Herman nuts. He can't sleep and feels that going for his nightly walk is the only thing that can cure his insomnia. Lily warns him against going back out until this "monster" business is resolved. Herman reminds her that he doesn't believe in things such as fiends and monsters. Meanwhile, Grandpa continues to experiment with his enlarging ray. He finally gets it to work and successfully enlarges a phonograph record and a pencil. Eddie wants him to try it out on him to make him bigger. Grandpa zaps him, but instead of making him bigger, it actually makes him smaller. He then tries to reverse the effect, but causes a power outage instead. Elsewhere, Herman is taking his nightly stroll through the park. Two uniformed police officers spot him and try to grab him. However, because Grandpa's experiments are causing a power outage, Herman cannot adequately see who it is that is attacking him. Frightened, he races back home and tells Lily that he was attacked by a creature with two heads and four blue arms. The two police officers are having a similar problem. They return to police headquarters and tell Chief Harris that they saw a monster exactly matching witnesses' description. The commissioner arrives and warns the chief to take care of this monster business or else he will demote him. Act Three is at it again.]] The following day, Grandpa continues with his experiments. At the very least, he has succeeded in returning Eddie to normal size. He fiddles with his equipment, drawing in even more power than before. The power influx causes electrical devices all over the house to go berserk. Herman's electric razor flies out of his hand. Lily's kitchen appliances including the toaster, blender and rotisserie begin churning out food at an alarming rate. Even street lamps from across town begin exploding. As day grows into evening, Grandpa is still at it. Herman is growing increasingly frustrated with the constant noise levels coming from the dungeon lab. Eddie comes into the room and tells his father that Marilyn went on a date out to Midcity Park. Now that Herman believes that a monster is roaming the park area, he feels that it was a terrible idea for Marilyn to go out there -- even if she did finally get a date. Herman decides to go to the park to protect her. Chief Harris meanwhile, embarks upon an ambitious plan. Dressing up as a woman, he goes to the park in the hopes of luring the monster into a trap. While walking through the park, the mugger appears again and accosts Harris, mistaking him for a woman. Herman is nearby and hears Harris scream. Believing that it is Marilyn screaming, he runs to the rescue and grabs the mugger. Chief Harris is so shocked to see Herman that he literally flips his wig. The mugger faints at the sight of Herman. Herman hangs the purse snatcher up in a tree. The next morning, the Munsters go down for breakfast. Grandpa wants an extra serving of pancakes, but Lily tells that the rest are for Herman, "After what he's been through," she attests, "... he deserves them". Marilyn reads from the local newspaper about the events that took place in the park. Little reference is made to Herman other than to mention that he was a heroic citizen who assisted the police, but was too modest to take any credit for helping them capture the criminal. While Herman muses over the news, Grandpa uses his powers to steal Herman's pancakes. At the police station, Commissioner Ludlow asks Chief Harris to describe the man who assisted him in the park. Harris remarks that he was about nine feet tall with green skin, red eyes and long arms. As promised, the Commissioner demotes Harris and re-assigns him to monitor a police call box in the middle of the desert. Act Four Grandpa finally decides to give up on his experiments. He simply cannot generate enough electricity. One good side effect however, is that he was able to use his enlarging ray to help cure Herman's insomnia. Lily asks him how he did this, and Grandpa shows her a giant sleeping pill that he made. She remarks that Herman could never swallow a pill that large, to which Grandpa explains, "Oh, he didn't swallow it. I accidentally dropped it on his head." Herman lies before them all, sleeping like a baby. Cast Principal Cast Guest Stars Notes & Trivia * This episode has been made available on The Munsters - The Complete First Season DVD as well as The Munsters: The Complete Series DVD collection. * In the previous episode, Lily states that Marilyn's seat at the breakfast table is the one closest to the audience. In this episode however, she is seen sitting in the chair to the right of the audience. * This episode features a rare moment of breaking the fourth wall. After finding Chief Harris dressed in drag, Commissioner Ludlow looks at the camera and asks, "Why couldn't I be a fireman like my mother wanted me to?" * This is the first work in the horror genre for actor Paul Baxley, who is also a stunt coordinator. Bloopers * A woman who sees Herman is so startled that her pigtails rise into the air. The strings keeping her hair suspended can clearly be seen as well as the shadow of the strings on the wall behind her. * In the scene where Eddie is on the chandelier, a harness cable can be visibly seen reaching from his back towards the ceiling. Quotes * Lily Munster: You've been reading in the dark again. It'll ruin your eyes. And then we'll have to get you another pair. * Grandpa Munster: Lots of people have insomnia and you don't see them losing any sleep over it. * Herman Munster: In this day and age no enlightened person believes in fiends and monsters. * Herman Munster: Ha! Spot's afraid of his own shadow! Come to think of it, I don't blame him. * Herman Munster: Remember this, Eddie. It is the duty of every citizen to protect the police. See also External Links * * "A Walk on the Mild Side" at the TV IV * "A Walk on the Mild Side" at TV Rage.com * "A Walk on the Mild Side" at TV.com Guide ---- Category:1964 television episodes Category:Episodes with plot summaries Category:Episodes with plot summaries